A randomized comparison of nifedipine and sodium nitroprusside in severe hypertension.

We randomized patients with severe hypertension in the Medical Intensive Care Unit to a treatment regimen of oral nifedipine or intravenous nitroprusside. Patients treated with nifedipine achieved a sustained reduction in diastolic blood pressure to less than or equal to 120 mm Hg in an average of less than five hours. Patients treated with nitroprusside achieved a similar reduction in 14 hours (p less than 0.05). Treatment with nifedipine was less expensive and required less time in the ICU than treatment with nitroprusside and was accompanied by no associated increase in morbidity or mortality. Oral nifedipine can be used as an alternative to intravenous nitroprusside in severe uncomplicated hypertension.